Literature Survey

Home Cinema

Home cinema is developing rapidly as television is so popular; we are now bringing the cinema quality home. The newest revolution in this field is the LCD television or flat screen. However, there is already a new kind of technology just waiting to take its place. OLED screens function by using organic light-emitting diodes which are printed on to a panel and luminates when the current passes through it.

The main pro to this new breakthrough is the screen is only 3mm thick! It can be printed on to plastic and the screen is malleable. It negates the need for a bulky backlight and power supply. These screens are capable of producing a perfect black as there is no backlight to filter through to affect the picture. They are also 1000 times faster, blur-free and the pictures can be viewed perfectly from all angles while maintaining its resolution. Sony has taken the lead in mass producing this technology. It is popular to manufacture because it is easier and they use less power than their LCD equivalent.

Although it does have its downside. The design has an effect on the sound quality as there is not much room for speakers, so only 1W can get through the digital amps. It has half the lifespan of a LCD or plasma screen, but 30,000 hours is 8 hours a day for 10 years so it’s not too bad!

The screen sizes in development at the moment are at 11in but Sony is looking to increase this in the future. Mobile OLED screens should hit the shops early 2009 and other possibilities for the future are using them to use them on moving materials like roll up blinds and clothing! I think with the money and research this will eventually surpass the popularity of the LCD and Plasma screens.


There is also new prototype TV that can be controlled by hand gestures or sound. Motion sensors and microphones are integrated into the sytem so that that you can manage the system with your hands or voice. In researching this report I watched a video demonstrating how this product works and to be honest I thought pressing the buttons looks a lot easier than waving you arms up in the air to select a different channel. There is also a simillar prototype for a computer and you have to actually hold your hand in the air to scroll through a menu. To me this product is not worth investing in.

Pods have been unnveiled as the new way forward for cinema for one. Its called the Ovei Media Pod and these are custom designed so that you can have it made as a presonal haven for yourself. The ultimate in luxury the pod is air conditioned and a touch pad control. They have been deveoped by McLaren (yes the ones who do the motor cars!) Perfect if you want to get away from it all, not if you actually want to see your family!

How about virtual reality glasses? They are a reality and you can use them to take your home cinema with you by plugging them into your phone or Ipod. You view a OLED screen, so the quality is top of the range. According to reviews I have discovered that the images feel like 3D! Reasonable price at £150. I definitley approve!

What was previously used for conference and cinematic uses only is now being brought to us in the home. Projectors are becoming more popular in home cinema systems because they give such good picture quality. Options are also available to suit the picture to you liking, they have almost every option available for edit. You do have to spend a bit of time working on the settings, as it does take quite a technical head as they are so specific but once its done you can reap the benefits! I am a major fan of the projector for the following reasons:
· The picture screen size is roughly 72” which is not avalable in TV format for the price of a projector
· It’s a piece of technology that has been used in other areas and now easily converts to the home so the technology is well developed.
· The user is able to specify their settings to a further extent to make it there own which is not possible with TVs
· The spec is a lot higher, so the image quality far outways the TV. Cinema quality at home!


Study Tools

As computers have exploded in popularity in the home, they have made their mark in schools to assist students with their learning. Early this year there has been a new device that connects children to their teachers, a whole range of information and new ways of communicating - all in the palm of their hand. The iPhone will be the vessel for a new system called Studywizz. After students log in they can access information, take tests, submit work and blog to their hearts content and they don’t have to be in school! Parents can also log on to check how their children are doing as they are given access to reports and assignments from the iphone.

This system was invented to encourage students to work outside the confines of classroom walls. Whether this will actually achieve the aim of getting students to do their homework I am doubtful! Also I want to raise the issue that students are always under pressure to work as their work can always be accessed, and it may encourage truancy because they can finish there work at home rather than even coming into school. Or be up too late finishing off things. Aren’t exams enough? The opposite side to this argument is that it may relieve the pressure because they don’t have to be at school to finish off assignments.

There is a prototypes being tested in schools in the South West of England for a DJ system and a new learning interface for music technology. The DVJ X1 system combines music and DVD mixing to provide a visual accompaniment to music all controlled by the same decks. Revolutionary multimedia educational package called the music key which teaches Music and Music Technology to junior to A level. Here is a video to describe these new areas of technology in more detail.



A music software program has been developed called “In the chair” by Starplayit (formerly in the chair) This program enables students to play with proffessional orchestras or bands around the world “every time they pick up their instrument.”

· You can select a level of difficulty
· You can achieve a score at the end on of a piece as it can measure pitch, tempo, tone, intonation and dynamics
· It can even tune your instrument!
· You can rehearse
· All you need is a microphone to attach to your clothes and off you go!
· You can select from a constantly updated library of pieces
· You can progress through levels – Tutor, (you get tips on how to play the piece from a professional musician) listen, (to how it should be played by professional solo-ist) practise, (your own part with a solo-ist) rehearse (with the band and soloist playing along with your own part) and perform (where it’s just you and the band)
· It also gives you feedback on the sheet music on screen and as you are playing lets you know if you play the note correctly and if you don’t it tells you what is wrong.
· You can slow the piece down or up in certain sections should you desire
· You get a score at the end of each piece to give the students point from which they can improve.

I think this is a brilliant piece of software, you can see, hear and play with people all over the world, let alone the perfect learning environment this program provides. It seems like there is nothing it cant do!

Recording Technology

Digital Recording was the latest phenomenon to change the way we record sound in the 1970s and is still hailed as the way forward. Nowadays pretty much anyone can record their own music with a computer at home. I have found a device called the Blue Snowball: It can record sound pretty much anywhere as it looks like this:

It is the world’s first USB microphone. It is a condenser microphone and it has 3 settings, one is the Omni Directional which records sound from all it, this is good if you want to pick up sound from all around the room, two and three are Cardioids and they pick up sound directly in front of it, (the third from slightly further back). You can just plug in and go and it doesn’t even need batteries as it is powered by the usb port. It is also very reasonably priced for a professional microphone. (About £50) For its price you get great quality results for your audio recording. Reviews of this product have all been great. I think that making recording more accessible and cost effective for people is great.

Another Portable recording device I have come across is the Olympus LS10 Audio recorder. This device is not that much bigger than a state of the art mobile phone and it records sound. You have al the features of a computer and mic into one with this gadget. It is packed with everything:

· Level control (manual or automatic)
· Inbuilt mini microphones
· Inbuilt mini speakers
· Line in
· External Microphone line
· Headphone ports (although you shouldn’t need them as they have speakers)
· 2GB of memory and capable of adding another 30 GB in an SD card.
· LCD screen with menus
· Quality of recording options from CD level upwards
· Peak light
· USB port which an upload and download files to your computer
· And lots of other features that the statement of all of them would make for a boring report!


As I gather the sound is very good but suffers a little on the line in connection. It costs a mighty £260 but given this is a computer and microphone combined I’d say it’s a reasonable price and can be used in professional situations.